


Let’s Just Keep Wasting Time While The Sun is Shining

by chenah3h3



Series: Akira (Manga - AU) [5]
Category: Akira (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Awkwardness, Bonding, Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, F/M, Gen, Male-Female Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-16 01:15:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29692782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chenah3h3/pseuds/chenah3h3
Summary: Wherein Tetsuo tries repeatedly shouting “no” at his feelings; it’s not very effective.A short fic set in an AU that follows the manga continuity. My follow up to The Snail & The Porcupine.
Relationships: Akira & Kaori (Akira), Kaori & Shima Tetsuo, Kaori/Shima Tetsuo
Series: Akira (Manga - AU) [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109189
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	Let’s Just Keep Wasting Time While The Sun is Shining

**_Mostly, I remember the girl_ **

**_Sad chick like that_ **

**_but something changed in me_ **

**_She got to me_ ** __

Absolute  _ dogshit _ . That’s what it tasted like. Maybe even worse. He went in for another bite; the fruit rapidly disintegrated in his mouth. Damn thing had gotten all mealy from age. Hard to chew - even harder to swallow. None of that mattered to him. Tetsuo was itching for a distraction. Something to take his mind off the other night.

Pathetic. The whole thing blew up in his face. The fact he wound up in tears really got under his skin. He could swear her sadness was contagious. Regardless, Tetsuo stood by his decision. He couldn’t risk desyncing with Akira for a second time. If keeping her close meant the kid stayed in line, Tetsuo would have to deal with it. 

Off in the horizon, rays of sunlight stretched out over decayed buildings. Small wave crests glittered across the water’s surface. A new day. Tetsuo was determined. One way or another, he’d straighten this out with her. For good. 

After he took the last bite, Tetsuo stared at the fruit’s core. Its remains had already oxidized. In disgust, he chucked the leftovers far away - into the water. It left an unremarkable splash. He leaned onto one hand and cursed under his breath. With little else to do, he closed his eyes and prepared himself for-

“Master Tetsuo.” That. That spineless, horrendously soft voice of hers. It nagged him how quick he’d gotten used to it. Not even a week into her “promotion”, and she already fit neatly into the background. He didn’t fail to notice the lack of emotion whenever she talked to him, either. Kaori always spoke to Tetsuo so formally. Distant and tepid, as though eggshells were glued to her shoes. Wasn’t that what he’d been counting on? Proof that...nothing had changed. A promise that things would stay as they were. As they should be; ought to be, rather. 

He spied her from the corner of his eye. Kaori carried three bowls in her hands. She held one out to him. Tetsuo’s brows furrowed; he never ordered her to do that. He skipped breakfast out of habit, anyway. Despite his questions, Tetsuo didn’t wave her off. As she set the bowl on the armrest Kaori warned, “It’s very hot. Please be careful,” then walked away. While she climbed up the ladder, Tetsuo snatched the bowl. In full-blown defiance, he scarfed down half the soup in one go. His palate was in flames; he couldn’t care less. With the back of his hand, Tetsuo wiped his mouth. Before he could finish what was left, her voice caught his attention. 

“Good morning! I’m sorry I kept you waiting…” And there it was. That wholehearted, unbridled kindness. It would’ve been a fairly sweet sound if it hadn’t gone to waste. Not like Akira ever said anything to her. The kid mostly sat around, slept, and - if he felt so inclined - tossed Tetsuo’s mind around like a pile of rocks.  _ Rotten little twerp _ . 

He soon got bored with idling on the throne. While it delighted Tetsuo to harass his aide, he couldn’t be bothered to call for him. After a brief stretch, he reached for his food and vanished into the air. 

When Tetsuo reemerged at the end of the table, he created a small gust of wind. Kaori gasped. He heard the chair legs shriek as she jumped. Part of him wanted to catch the look on her face, but he didn’t move. Things went silent before Kaori returned to feeding Akira. Tetsuo figured he’d hear nothing but the clang of the kid’s spoon and some quiet munching. Instead, he eavesdropped on Kaori’s one-sided conversation. “Did you get a good night’s sleep...Have a nice dream?...Looks like the sky is going to be clear today. I wonder how the parade’s going to go. It’s not for a while, though. Hm, what could we do...Any ideas?” 

The girl’s persistence fascinated him. Tetsuo couldn’t decide what was better - the gall to attempt a normal conversation, or how she earnestly waited for a response. He felt relief when Kaori said, “All done!” as he took that to mean this theatre of the absurd had ended. It didn’t.

“What is it?” she asked Akira. A short pause preceded a revelation. “Oh, you want to go down and play?...We can do that, but let me take these first.” Tetsuo eyed his now-empty plate. The soup - awfully hot as it was - didn’t taste all that bad. Certainly was miles better than the fruit. Kaori approached him. Her hands trembled. Tetsuo couldn’t parse whether that stemmed from him or the breeze. Their eyes met when she said, “Can I take that for you?” Kaori looked away instinctively. Tetsuo began to have second thoughts. All things considered, she really was too much of a doormat to try pulling one over him.

He handed her the plate and said nothing. While Kaori was away, Tetsuo turned around. He glared at Akira, who met him with a stiff, unreadable stare. Honestly, the rubble that surrounded them had more life than this kid. After an excruciating couple of minutes, Kaori returned. She crouched beside Akira. “Thank you for waiting,” she told him nicely. Meanwhile, Kaori had no words for Tetsuo. Not even a passing acknowledgement. He tapped his fingers on the table, unnerved by how much that bothered him. The two walked away. Tetsuo tried hard to find an acceptable explanation for his reaction. They stopped in front of the drapes. Kaori looked back. “Master Tetsuo?” 

“What?” he responded - a little too soon for his taste. 

Her eyes shifted. “Do you, um...want to come with us?”

* * *

**_Cause I can see the future_ **

**_And it’s a place_ **

**_about 70 miles east of here_ **

**_Where it’s lighter_ **

Tetsuo’s boredom far outweighed the boulders Akira played with. He never meant to say yes; it just happened. While the kid searched for smaller rocks in the water, Tetsuo and Kaori watched from the steps. She sat to his left.  ~~ Like before ~~ . Aside from the occasional glance at Akira, Kaori’s eyes were on the sky. Tetsuo thought she’d tense up now that they were closer to each other. Instead, the girl appeared to take everything in with this peaceful look on her face. He even made out a tiny indication of a smile.

That is, until she looked at him. The light in her eyes faded a bit when she did that, too. Like clockwork. “Master Tetsuo?” she asked quietly. 

“Yeah?” he replied. 

Kaori looked away before following up with, “How are you feeling?”

Tetsuo barely hid the rolling of his eyes. He gave her a short answer. “Different.”

Much to his disappointment, Kaori refused to drop the subject. “What do you mean?”

Tetsuo crossed his arms. “What do you think?”

Although she stayed quiet, he knew her eyes were on him. After a long, awkward silence, she spoke again. “I hope that means you’re feeling better.” 

“Why do you care?” he asked. Tetsuo scratched the back of his head. He didn’t intend for that to come across so candidly. 

“Because,” her voice trailed off for a moment. “I think-I think it can be nice to know that someone’s looking out for you.”

Kaori’s answer threw him off. Tetsuo looked back. Same as usual, that gloomy aura loomed over her, but the fear...it was gone. He wanted to tell her off for having the nerve to pity him. The longer he looked into her eyes, though, the more he suspected that wasn’t her motive. Tetsuo kept staring, hoping to find the answ-

Then Kaori broke their eye contact. Akira now stood in front of her. “Yes?” The kid dug into one of his pockets. He pulled out a glassy, orange-colored stone. It had a myriad of stripes, a smooth surface, and a subtle shine. No sharp edges whatsoever. Kaori took the gift gladly. “Aw, thank you!” 

Tetsuo never heard her talk with such joy about anything. When the kid refused to leave, she asked, “Do you need some help?” He blinked. Kaori removed her shoes before joining him in the water. Tetsuo watched her. She would find rocks that were too heavy for Akira to carry and add them to his piles. For the first few, she checked with him before setting anything down. Soon after, the pair moved together in total silence. 

Tetsuo shut his eyes for a second. When he opened them, Akira greeted him to a dull, scratchy, abominable cluster of rocks held together by  _ something _ . Tetsuo squinted at the offering. 

Kaori stopped midway through whatever she was doing to explain. “Master Tetsuo, I think he wants you to help, too.” In an unsurprising move, she meekly added, “I-if you want to, that is.”

Tetsuo reluctantly reached for his “present” and grumbled, “Yeah, sure, whatever.” He moved to sit on the banister. Akira pointed at a mound then rejoined Kaori. Tetsuo tossed the amalgamated mess in the air for a bit. No way in hell he’d entertain that little bastard beyond this. He hurled his gift into the sky and let it float by his head. Slowly, the gnarled monstrosity traveled to its destination. Kaori had kneeled down to grab something out of the water. She raised her head in time to see the rock nestle itself into the mound. Kaori looked up at him; Tetsuo looked down at her. Then it happened. Gone in a matter of seconds, but he had no doubt about it. Kaori smiled at him. A small, shy, toned-down expression, but - most importantly - it was real. True to his word, he kept out of their little project. His boredom persisted, but he didn’t leave. When the two were done, Kaori asked whether Tetsuo intended to wait for the aide by himself. He wanted to say no; he answered yes anyway. Kaori nodded. “ Okay.” She left him with one more smile and a humble wave. “I’ll see you later.” 

**_Linger on over here_ **

**_Got the time?_ **

**_Let X Equal X_ **

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> I had a nice time editing this to Misa's Theme A. Lol, I feel like Tetsuo comes off like such a curmodgeon in this fic. 
> 
> Opening quote is from the movie The Wild One (1953). The lyrics in the middle and end are from Laurie Anderson's "Let X = X". I originally wanted to quote the postcript from the last part of that song, but I thought it didn't really flow.


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